United Methodist Church Westlake Village

United Methodist Church Westlake Village
  • 5.0 (2)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Weekly

Audio of Pastor Darren Cowdrey's weekly message, as we work together toward fulfilling our mission statement: "Setting a Course for a Better Life." Live-streamed weekly from our campus in Westlake Village, CA.  Video of this entire worship service is available for viewing or listening on our home page at http://www.umcwv.org for approximately 3 weeks, and then also available on our YouTube channel at https://bit.ly/4hFmuBZ All songs used in compliance with our CCLI and streaming licenses.Copyright License # 1291056Streaming License #CSPL075029 If you'd like to support our ministries, please follow this link: https://give.tithe.ly/?formId=6fe0e233-47e0-4a4b-8d21-f21ad5e75db8

  1. Pimento Cheese Sandwiches And The Problem With Good Intentions

    3d ago

    Pimento Cheese Sandwiches And The Problem With Good Intentions

    Send us Fan Mail A single line from a movie sticks with us: “What if empathy is an evolutionary advantage?” That question turns into a faith question fast, because so many of us have been trained to think empathy makes us soft, exposed, or easy to take advantage of. We push back on that assumption and explore how compassion can be real strength, the kind that steadies a community and makes room for people who are struggling.  From there we move into Romans 15 and the blunt clarity of the call: strength is for service, not status. We talk about what it looks like to “lend a hand,” to stop choosing what is merely convenient, and to measure maturity by how we carry the burdens around us. Then Romans 16 widens the lens even more, as Paul names women in leadership and points the church toward a radical welcome that includes Gentiles, meaning outsiders, neighbors, and basically everybody. Inclusion is not a modern buzzword here; it’s a long, hard spiritual practice the church has wrestled with from the start.  We also get honest about why sharing faith can feel awkward. It’s often easier to recommend a movie than to explain why church matters, even when faith gives us meaning, resilience, and a way to practice love in public. A story about pimento cheese sandwiches lands the point: good intentions can still miss people if we don’t learn what they actually need. If you care about Christian inclusion, United Methodist identity, women in church leadership, thoughtful evangelism, and building a welcoming church, you’ll find plenty to chew on here. Subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review so more people can find the conversation. Support the show

    24 min
  2. What If Humility Is The Real Proof Of Belief?

    Jun 1

    What If Humility Is The Real Proof Of Belief?

    Send us Fan Mail Romans is not a calm textbook, it is a pastoral intervention. We start a new series by admitting the real-world challenge of tackling Paul’s most comprehensive letter in the middle of confirmation and graduation season, then we name why Romans still matters: it is written to a community trying to stay together while Jews and Gentiles bring different histories, habits, and assumptions into the same church. Paul is not chasing abstract debates. He is fighting for a gospel that belongs to everyone, without special treatment or spiritual status. Romans 2 comes in hot, and we do not soften it. Paul aims straight at the way we judge each other, because judgment feels holy while it quietly corrodes the soul. We talk about “God shows no partiality” and why that line exposes the permission we give ourselves to polarize, condemn, and claim that our way is the only godly way. When anger and certainty take over, we stop listening. We end up trusting our own picture of God more than God. A children’s story about the old turtle becomes a surprisingly sharp mirror: the breeze, the mountain, the robin, and the bear all describe God through their own identity, and the argument grows until wisdom reminds them that God is bigger than any single frame. We close with a practical refrain from Richard Rohr and the Center for Action and Contemplation: “The best criticism of the bad is the practice of the better.” If you are tired of outrage and ready for a better way to live your faith with humility, press play. Subscribe for the Romans series, share this with a friend who needs a calmer kind of courage, and leave a review. What is one “better practice” you want to try this week? Support the show

    9 min
  3. When The Spirit Breaks The Rules

    May 24

    When The Spirit Breaks The Rules

    Send us Fan Mail The Holy Spirit does not wait for our permission, and that is both thrilling and unsettling. We start with the Pentecost story many of us know by heart, then take a sharp left into Numbers 11 where Moses hits a breaking point in the wilderness and God answers with a haunting question: “Is the Lord’s power limited?” When Spirit gets shared across seventy elders and then spills over onto two men outside the official circle, the community panics and tries to shut it down. Moses does the opposite and celebrates it, and that contrast becomes the heart of the message. We keep it painfully practical: what happens when someone “preaches in the courtyard” today and our first instinct is not wonder but suspicion? We talk about spiritual discernment and why it matters, then name the danger of letting discernment harden into cynicism. The conversation brushes up against deal breakers and “canceling” as a modern way we narrow the space the Spirit can move, especially when a person or movement says one wrong thing and we discard everything good that came before. Then we watch for the Spirit in ordinary compassion through a story from Philadelphia: a pizza shop’s pay-it-forward wall that has helped give away nearly 10,000 slices. We reflect on what that kind of mercy gives to people who are hungry, to people who want to help, and to a whole city that needs evidence of grace. The closing challenge is simple but demanding: practising openness is a faith discipline, and Pentecost is a long season, so we should get busy looking for the Spirit “everywhere and in everything.” If this stirred something in you, subscribe, share it with a friend, and leave a review, then tell us where you’ve seen the Spirit show up unexpectedly? Support the show

    21 min
  4. How Can I Find My Role In The Body Of Christ?

    May 18

    How Can I Find My Role In The Body Of Christ?

    Send us Fan Mail Unity sounds beautiful until you try to live it with real people. Pastor Darren starts with Paul’s “body of Christ” image and makes it concrete: some of us are eyes who see a path forward, some are ears who listen, some are mouths who speak clearly, some are feet who keep momentum, some are hands who do the work, and some are hearts who keep watch over the community’s wellbeing. The laughter is real, but the question underneath is serious: where do you fit, and what happens to the whole church when any one gift stays hidden or gets pushed aside? Ascension Sunday gives the message its backbone. We walk through Luke’s picture of Jesus’ last moments and the meaning Luke wants the church to remember: Jesus’ death fulfills Scripture, repentance and forgiveness open a new reality with God, and the disciples are told to wait for what comes next. That “wait” is not empty time, but a forming season that points toward Pentecost and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Then we pivot to John 17, where Jesus prays “so that they may be one as we are one.” It is a bold vision of Christian unity that does not depend on everyone being identical, but on God holding people together with purpose. Paul’s letters to the Ephesians and Corinthians echo that urgency because the early churches fought too, and Paul insists the body is only strong when every member is able to bring what they have. The closing image, a bell choir, makes the whole idea audible: no one ringer can carry the whole melody, timing matters, and even silence has a role. If this helped you see your place in the church community with fresh eyes, subscribe, share the episode with a friend, and leave a review with the “body part” you think you are. Support the show

    15 min
  5. Is The Holy Spirit The Sequel To Jesus?

    May 10

    Is The Holy Spirit The Sequel To Jesus?

    Send us Fan Mail Sequels are supposed to continue the story, but they also expose what we really loved about the original. We kick things off by arguing about the best movie sequels, then pivot to a bigger claim: the Holy Spirit is the “sequel” to Jesus, promised in John 14 as “another advocate” who stays with us forever. That word matters. Advocate means we are not alone, not abandoned, and not trying to live faithfully on sheer willpower.  From there, we get honest about the Trinity. If you’ve ever wondered how Christians can talk about Father, Son, and Holy Spirit while still believing in one God, you’re not the only one. We trace a quick, practical history of how early Christians described their experience of God, why church councils argued so fiercely about language, and why mystery is not a weakness of faith but part of its reality. Theology can feed spiritual growth, but it can also distract us if it becomes the main event.  The heart of the message lands on the verse right before the Spirit is promised: “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” We talk about what that looks like in everyday life: sharing love, fighting for justice, bringing comfort, and becoming the kind of people through whom God feels real to others. The world is heavy right now, and that’s exactly why an Advocate matters and why our choices matter too. If this encouraged you, subscribe, share the episode, leave a review, and tell us: where do you feel called to be the sequel? Support the show

    16 min
  6. Knowing The Way

    May 4

    Knowing The Way

    Send us Fan Mail A sign in Minneapolis says, “The bus does not stop here,” and it exposes something many of us do without noticing: we define ourselves by the places we refuse to go. From the way churches talk about belief to the way we talk about each other, “no” can start to sound like the whole message. We take that moment and turn it into a clearer, more hopeful question: where does the bus stop, and what actually nourishes Christian faith?  We then move into John 14 during the resurrection season, when Jesus prepares the disciples for his absence. Thomas asks what all of us ask at some point, especially in grief or change: how do we know where you’re going, and how do we get there? Jesus answers, “You know the way,” and then says the line that has launched a thousand arguments: “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” Rather than getting stuck in an exclusivity debate that goes nowhere, we look for what “the way” looks like on the ground, in ordinary decisions and relationships.  That’s where the stories carry the weight. We talk about the Sierra Service Project, mission trips, learning to build and repair homes, and what happens inside you when you stop watching from a distance and start serving with your hands. We share a powerful act of generosity, a truck given to a teenager who couldn’t afford a car, and the quiet ministry of a church community supporting someone through medical recovery. These moments turn big Christian theology into practical discipleship, lived compassion, and a faith you can recognize by its fruit.  If you’re hungry for a more grounded, less combative way to talk about Jesus, press play. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs encouragement, and leave a review with your take: where have you seen “the way” made real? Support the show

    16 min
  7. How Do We Hear Jesus’ Voice Amid Competing Voices?

    Apr 27

    How Do We Hear Jesus’ Voice Amid Competing Voices?

    Send us Fan Mail A lot of faith language sounds comforting until you place it in real life where attention is weaponized, outrage is monetized, and everybody claims to know the truth. We lean into John 10 and ask a sharper question: how do you recognize Jesus’ voice when so many voices are trained to hook you first? We walk through Jesus’ three self-descriptions in the Good Shepherd: teaching, gatekeeper, gate, and shepherd and we connect them to the healing of the man born blind that comes right before. That story isn’t just about eyesight; it’s about spiritual discernment, refusing easy blame, and letting God open our perception. From there, the shepherd imagery stops being soft poetry and becomes a picture of protection, belonging, and the cost of love when the “hired hands” walk away. Then we sit with one of the most searched and most misunderstood phrases in the Gospel of John: “life abundantly.” We push back on a heaven-only view that can turn faith into scorekeeping and make people harsh in the name of holiness. Abundant life has to touch the world we’re in, shaping Christian discipleship, social justice, compassion, and the courage to do what is right when it costs something. Along the way we connect that inner shift to Richard Rohr’s Falling Upward and the move many of us feel from chasing “what” to seeking “why.” If you’ve ever wondered whether “sheep” is an insult or a calling, this one is for you. Subscribe for more, share this with a friend who’s wrestling with discernment, and leave a review so more people can find the conversation. Support the show

    24 min
  8. Surprised By Jesus

    Apr 19

    Surprised By Jesus

    Send us Fan Mail Surprise doesn’t happen often, so when a story hits you with it four times, it’s trying to wake you up. We sit with Luke 24 and the Emmaus Road, where disciples stumble through grief, confusion, and the kind of disappointment that sounds painfully modern: “We thought he was the one.” They’ve heard about an empty tomb, yet they still feel detached and disenchanted, and we name that experience honestly as part of the Easter season journey toward Pentecost. We also nerd out a little on why this story shows up only in Luke, how it lands right after the resurrection scene, and why the Gospel writers may have valued credible witness over a perfectly smooth narrative. But we don’t stop at evidence. We push toward the question many of us actually carry: what is resurrection supposed to do to us, not just what are we supposed to believe about it? From there, we track Jesus’ grounding moves in the passage: he reframes the moment through Scripture and sacrifice, then breaks bread and suddenly eyes are opened. That leads into communion as a Christian ritual of identity, and a surprising bridge to Richard Rohr, Archimedes, and the fulcrum metaphor for social transformation. Contemplation plus action is powerful, but we argue the fixed point is ultimately who Christ is and who we’re trying to become in him. If you’ve been asking why faith should matter when the world feels stuck, this conversation is for you. Subscribe, share this with a friend who’s tired and searching, and leave a review with your biggest takeaway. Where do you find your fixed point when hope starts slipping? Support the show

    20 min
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Ratings & Reviews

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out of 5
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About

Audio of Pastor Darren Cowdrey's weekly message, as we work together toward fulfilling our mission statement: "Setting a Course for a Better Life." Live-streamed weekly from our campus in Westlake Village, CA.  Video of this entire worship service is available for viewing or listening on our home page at http://www.umcwv.org for approximately 3 weeks, and then also available on our YouTube channel at https://bit.ly/4hFmuBZ All songs used in compliance with our CCLI and streaming licenses.Copyright License # 1291056Streaming License #CSPL075029 If you'd like to support our ministries, please follow this link: https://give.tithe.ly/?formId=6fe0e233-47e0-4a4b-8d21-f21ad5e75db8

Information

  • Creator
    United Methodist Church Westlake Village
  • Years Active
    2016 - 2026
  • Episodes
    520
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 United Methodist Church Westlake Village
  • Show Website
    United Methodist Church Westlake Village